Giant sinkhole in Guatemala swallows houses and people

A giant 330 foot sinkhole opened before dawn Friday, swallowing several homes and a truck and leaving a father and two teenagers missing in Guatemala
City.

Officials said the 100-meter-deep (330-foot-deep) sinkhole in a crowded neighborhood of poor, concrete homes was caused by recent rains and an
underground sewage flow from a ruptured main.

National disaster coordinator Hugo Hernandez identified the missing as Domingo, Irma and David Sosyos, ages 53, 18 and 15, respectively. A body
appeared in a river of sewage near the sinkhole, but it was unclear whether the corpse was a victim.

"The shaking of the house woke us up," said 26-year old Edward Ramirez, who lives 50 meters (50 yards) from the sinkhole and said residents had been
hearing noises and feeling tremors for about a month. "People were shouting 'the electric posts are falling down!'

Authorities said the hole was extremely unstable, forcing the evacuation of nearly 1,000 people from their homes. Police helped residents, some even
carrying refrigerators and televisions on their shoulders.

The pit was emitting foul odors, loud noises and tremors, and a rush of water could be heard from its depths. Authorities feared it
could widen or others could open up.